Orange and Barclaycard launch UK’s first NFC service

Well, it’s finally here. Orange and Barclaycard have today launched the UK’s first contactless payment system for mobile phones. It’s all over the news, and indeed Orange reckons “this will be the biggest revolution in payments since credit cards were introduced in the UK by Barclaycard over 40 years ago.”

The service is called ‘Quick Tap’, and allows users to make payments of up to £15 at 50,000 stores, including Pret a Manger, EAT., Little Chef, Wembley Arena, Subway, Wilkinson and McDonalds.

Orange is also launching a special Quick Tap variant of the Samsung Tocco Lite, predictably called the Samsung Tocco Quick Tap. It’ll be £59.99 on PAYG, or free on pay monthly from £10PM over 24 months. The network says there are "more handsets expected to follow from a selection of leading manufacturers."

Users can top up with up to £100 in advance, and each payment requires a PIN to be entered before the transaction is authorised.

As an added incentive, Barclaycard will give users £10 credit upon activating the service, and 10% cashback on all Quick Tap purchases made in the first three months.

David Chan, CEO of Barclaycard Consumer Europe, beamed: “This is the first time that customers can use their mobile to pay for goods and services in shops across the UK rather than using cards or cash. They’ll be able to do this, safe in the knowledge that this is a secure technology brought to them by the biggest names in payments and mobile technology."

Pippa Dunn, Orange Vice President, added: "We no longer use our mobile phones simply for talking and texting - apps, cameras and music players allow us to use them for a lot more. So, making contactless payments with your mobile is a natural and really exciting innovation which we're pleased to be leading on in the UK.

“Orange Quick Tap is the first of its kind, a service that allows you to pay for everyday items just by tapping your phone wherever you see the contactless payment symbol. It’s going to start a revolution in the way we pay for things on the high street."